Celia Cruz may soon get her due on the small screen: film company Endemol Shine North America just optioned her 2005 autobiography for a potential television series with producer/director Kenny Ortega ready to take the lead.
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The option — or contract between a filmmaker and the owner of the source material, in this case a book — will center around Celia: My Life, written Ana Cristina Reymundo from interviews with the Latin icon prior to her death in 2003.
Dubbed the Queen of Salsa, the Cuba native has left an indelible legacy on not just Latin music, but the greater music industry. Cruz earned three career GRAMMY Awards, four Latin GRAMMYs and in 2016 she was recognized with the Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award. A film about her life and career would be a welcome chance to celebrate this legacy.
The production company behind the option is also working on other Latin music star projects, including To Selena With Love and a drama titled " Nicky Jam: El Ganador."
"There is no bigger name in Latin music than Celia Cruz," said Endemol Shine North America CEO Cris Abrego. "We are thrilled to be adapting her amazing life story, one filled with triumph and tragedy, for a dramatic television series with a producer of Kenny Ortega's pedigree attached."
